The Hayward Gallery is at the heart of the visual arts at Southbank Centre and a leading international art gallery. Opened in 1968, it is a modern, purpose-built gallery with one of the largest and most versatile exhibition spaces in Britain. It is superbly located on the South Bank of the River Thames in an area of London that has undergone a major cultural and business renaissance since the 2007 redevelopment of the Royal Festival Hall, and surrounding areas.

The Hayward Gallery is renowned for its diverse range of exhibitions focusing on contemporary and modern art and visual culture. The exhibition programme has a powerful contemporary focus that has been widely acclaimed by the press and the public. Since the arrival of Ralph Rugoff as The Hayward Gallery’s new Director in 2006, the programme includes 3 to 5 shows per year in the main galleries and 6-8 in the Project Space, designed to introduce contemporary artists from around the world to London audiences. In addition, the Hayward Gallery works with artists to show works across the Southbank Centre’s site. This includes the annual summer presentation of Appearing Rooms, a water sculpture by Jeppe Hein.

Hayward Touring: The Hayward Gallery creates imaginative, high-profile exhibitions in London and within the UK through Hayward Touring. Hayward Touring collaborates with artists, independent curators, writers and partner institutions to develop and tour imaginative exhibitions that are seen by approximately half a million people in over 100 cities and towns each year, showing in galleries, museums and other publicly funded organisations. Exhibitions range in scale and include; the British Art Show, the largest and most ambitious survey of recent British art, organized in different cities around the country every five years; international group exhibitions produced with guest curators, artists and writers; and smaller monographic print, photography or new media exhibitions. These projects tour to a variety of venues, including galleries, libraries, universities, colleges and schools, arts centres and historic sites. Recent exhibitions include Magic Show, The End of the Line: Attitudes in Drawing, Mark Wallinger curates: The Russian Linesman, and Disposable People: Contemporary Global Slavery. British Art Show 7 opened in autumn 2010 and will tours in 2011.

Arts Council Collection: The Arts Council Collection boasts the largest loan collection of modern and contemporary British art in the world. With over 7500 works of art spanning more than sixty years, the Collection can be seen in exhibitions and displays at home and abroad, as well as through long-term loans to public buildings across the UK. Recent acquisitions include important works by Bridget Riley and Wolfgang Tillmans. The Collection is managed by the Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre on behalf of Arts Council England, and is based at the Hayward Gallery in London and at Longside, Yorkshire Sculpture Park. As a Collection ‘without walls’, it has no permanent gallery; however, changing displays of sculpture, video and installations from the Arts Council Collection are regularly on view at Longside Gallery. Works from the Collection can be viewed at: www.artscouncilcollection.org.uk

The Hayward Gallery presents approximately 3–5 major exhibitions, 6–8 project space shows at the Hayward Gallery, and 3 new touring exhibitions each year.

Most outstanding projects in recent years:

“Move: Choreographing You,” 2010;

“Ed Ruscha: Fifty Years of Painting,” 2009/10;

“Walking in My Mind,” 2009;

“Psycho Buildings: Artists take on Architecture,” 2008;

“Antony Gormley: Blind Light,” 2007.

The Hayward Gallery seeks to bridge the divide between art, artists and the broader public and to build new audiences at every opportunity.

The Hayward Gallery’s Learning and Participation programme is for all ages, runs year-round, and forms an integral part of the exhibition programme. The Hayward Gallery holds artist talks, exhibition tours, debates, workshops and family events.

Hayward Publishing produces approx 7 catalogues per year to accompany the Hayward Gallery, Hayward Touring and Arts Council Collection exhibitions. These books are available from Cornerhouse Publications in the UK, and in the Distributed Art Publishers, Inc in the US.

The Hayward Gallery is made up of: 3 galleries on ground level, total area of 958.61m2, 2 galleries and corridor on upper level, total area 528.03 m2; 3 sculpture courts (342.08; 162.30; 120.92 sqm); The Waterloo Sunset Pavilion (interior and exterior), 121.8 m2; The Hayward Gallery Project Space, 115 m2.